No one can do everything. But everyone can do something.
“Climate Future” Film Festival (Save the date!)
The Monmouth Public Library will show a series of award-winning drama, documentary, comedy, and animation films that explore possible climate futures on Thursday, July 16, from 6:00 to 8:00 PM at 168 Ecols St. S in Monmouth.
This event is free and open to the public.
climate.us is now online (and not a moment too soon!)
As most climate-conscious people know, the Trump administration, shortly after taking office in 2025, closed the website climate.gov and fired most of the scientists and staff that published the world-class source of scientific information. With the website’s closure, the American and global public and the media lost valuable, verifiable information about atmospheric CO2 levels, surface temperatures, glacier and sea-ice melt, sea-level rise and more.
Now, some of the NOAA scientists who worked for the government have resurrected climate.gov as climate.us. The group’s mission is “keeping trusted climate information up-to-date and easy to find.” They salvaged much of the data that the Trump administration buried in various government archives, and also publish current information from reliable sources.
When you visit the site, check out the easy-to-use climate dashboard on the homepage. Also, be sure to visit their about page that introduces the staff and its mission, and lists many articles about them in the mainstream media.
MICG volunteers help Monmouth develop Climate Action Plan
The City of Monmouth wants to do its part in the global effort to slow the advance of harmful climate change. To that end, the City Council instructed its staff to form a Climate Action Plan Advisory Group comprising staff members, a representative from WOU, and MICG volunteers living in Monmouth.
Meeting monthly, the Group discusses topics such as land use and transportation, buildings and energy, consumption and waste management, ecosystem stewardship and preparations for climate emergencies such as extreme heat waves, wildfire encroachment and floods. The Group’s goal is to propose a series of practical actions and policies that will both reduce Monmouth’s contributions to climate change and improve the City’s ambience and livability.
Because of overlapping government functions throughout Polk County, Monmouth’s plan will affect the surrounding area and communities. Therefore, many subscribers to this newsletter who do not live in Monmouth will be affected. Once the draft plan is in place, there will be a call for wider public input. The MICG will keep our readers informed of future developments.
Climate Café series ongoing
We will hold the next Climate Café on July 9th from 7:00-8:30 PM at the Monmouth Senior/Community Center. These gatherings focus on our emotional reactions to the climate crisis. Thank you to those who have come to previous Cafés to share and listen.
After the August 13th Climate Café, the format and location of future Climate Cafés are subject to change. Changes will be announced in our newsletter. Please join us and bring a friend to the Climate Cafés.
Books About Climate Change
July’s reading: THE MINISTRY OF THE FUTURE by Kim Stanley Robinson.
Award-winning science fiction author Kim Stanley Robinson explores one possible climate future in this fascinating, full-length novel. Although the story begins with a grim description of a deadly heatwave that strikes India in the near future, it moves from there to a fascinating tale of humanity’s response to the catastrophe and the entire climate crisis.
If you’re looking for a hot summer read, this is it.
Ongoing Activities
Attend our monthly online meeting: Join our Climate Group’s next regular online planning meeting at 6:00 PM, Monday, July 13. These “business meetings” focus on policy issues and task distribution for our group’s activities. If you want to attend, please send us an email and we will send you the link.